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Japan Times
JAPAN / FUKUSHIMA FILE
Jul 16, 2017

Date goes whole hog into boar leather business in Fukushima

Wild boar leather is said to breathe well and resist chafing. It is used in Date, Fukushima Prefecture, to make products like babies' first walking shoes because it is soft and fits well.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film / Wide Angle
Jul 13, 2017

Meet the kawaii witches of the East

Despite being a fantastic go-to costume on Halloween, witches in the West have never had it easy. There were the Salem witch trials of the 1690s, and similar trials elsewhere in North America and Europe through the 17th century, which served as warnings to independent women that they could be persecuted...
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jul 10, 2017

Aichi aquarium displays invasive alligator gar caught in Nagoya Castle's moat

One of the alligator gars caught in the vast moat of Nagoya Castle last year has been turned into a specimen for display at Hekinan Seaside Aquarium in Aichi Prefecture, giving visitors the chance to fully observe the long carnivorous fish indigenous to North America.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Jul 10, 2017

Smart speakers powered by voice agents seen ushering in era of AI

Major tech firms have been keen to sell speakers equipped with voice-based artificial intelligence agents recently.
Japan Times
CARTOONS / DAHL'S JAPAN
Jul 8, 2017

Inada Features

Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 7, 2017

Boxing legend Gushiken inspires younger Okinawa generation

Yoko Gushiken, a boxing legend who hails from Okinawa, hopes young people from prefecture will be brave enough to take on any challenge and succeed in any field.
EDITORIALS
Jul 6, 2017

Apple's iPhone turns 10

The iPhone has changed the world, transforming the lives of billions of people around the world and facilitating a social and economic transition that is still underway.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 5, 2017

From sex toys to works of art: 'Love doll' maker seeks to shed seedy image

Japan's oldest "love doll" manufacturer wants to strip the sex toys of their seedy image and encourage people to see them as works of art instead.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jul 5, 2017

North Korea apparently used Chinese timber truck for to carry ICBM, evading sanctions

To transport and erect the ballistic missile launched on Tuesday, North Korea apparently used a Chinese timber-hauling truck, highlighting the challenge of enforcing sanctions to curb the North's weapons program.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 4, 2017

Oita aims to heat things up with video of Olympian synchronized swimming in onsen

Famous for its onsen (hot springs), Oita Prefecture has posted a promotional video featuring former Olympians performing synchronized swimming in geothermal pools in a bid to "heat up" momentum for an upcoming international aquatics sports competition.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jul 3, 2017

New service connects Japanese travelers to compatriots living abroad

A website created by a Nagoya-based venture firm offering help from Japanese living overseas is gaining popularity with travelers.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jul 2, 2017

Canadians celebrate meaning of nation on rainy 150th birthday

Canada's long-anticipated 150th birthday celebrations Saturday were marked by heavy rain and some protests, though the downpour failed to dampen spirits of revelers who thronged in large numbers to enjoy musical performances and parades.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / JAPAN TIMES GONE BY
Jul 1, 2017

Japan Times 1992: 'Oita village sells itself as "Twen Peaks" '

The tiny village of Maetsue, Oita Prefecture, and Kyushu Japan Railway Co. are riding on the bandwagon of the popular U.S. television series “Twin Peaks,” asserting that the local scenery closely resembles the fictional American town.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / BACKSTREET STORIES
Jun 30, 2017

A visit to a preschool leads to lessons in noh and nothingness in Higashi-Gotanda

A gentleman I met at an educational conference invites me to tour the backstreets of Higashi-Gotanda, where he has opened a brand new preschool. Exiting A7 of the JR Yamanote Line's eponymous station in the early hours of a cool spring morning, I strike off northeast, along Sakurada-dori, more or less...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 30, 2017

Airbnb's new premium service steps up competition with luxury hotels

Airbnb Inc. is close to launching a new service that will match guests with quality-inspected home and apartment rentals. The product is intended to attract higher-paying travelers who have yet to use Airbnb because they prefer the amenities guaranteed by fancy hotels, said three people familiar with...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 30, 2017

Foreign IT workers seen as solution to industry shortage

There is a rising demand for IT engineers in Japan as many point out there is a shortage of such professionals domestically. An estimate shows that Japan will face a shortage of close to 600,000 IT-related professionals by 2030.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Jun 29, 2017

In a tale of two Akiras, let's see more Ai

For fans of the ikemen (handsome dude), Wowow's new mini-series "Akira and Akira" is like manna from heaven. Kicking off July 9, it stars actors Osamu Mukai and Takumi Saito, and the hype at this point may as well be soundtracked by The Weather Girls' "It's Raining Men."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Jun 28, 2017

'Marriage': Dean Fujioka evokes sympathy for the con man

Marriage scammers in the movies may be masters of deception, but their motives are usually clear enough. In Charlie Chaplin's "Monsieur Verdoux" (1947) the title character weds and murders widows to support his family. In Miwa Nishikawa's "Dreams for Sale" (2012), a husband and wife resort to serial...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jun 27, 2017

The scope of cultural displacement

Mercedes Benz Art Scope is an exchange program that allows Japanese artists to spend time in Germany and German artists to visit Japan. The Hara Museum of Contemporary Art has been a partner in this project since 2003, and in this year's group show, Stuttgart-based artist Menja Stevenson and Tama Art...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Tech
Jun 27, 2017

Classic Mini: Super Famicom — Nintendo wows gamers with surprise blast from the past

Nintendo Co. has finally unveiled its long-rumored Nintendo Classic Mini: Super Famicom gaming console — to be released in Japan on Oct. 5 — in a surprise announcement that thrilled gamers across the nation.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jun 27, 2017

At platform 9¾, Harry Potter fans mark 20 years of magic

Twenty years to the day after the first book in the Harry Potter series was published, fans gathered online and in the real world to express their enduring love for J.K. Rowling's magical creation.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jun 26, 2017

World War II practice bayonets discovered, evoking memories of Japan's wartime student military training

Four wooden rifles that had been used for bayonet practice during World War II as part of military training in schools have been discovered recently in Konan, Aichi Prefecture.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / ESSENTIAL READING FOR JAPANOPHILES
Jun 24, 2017

'The Informer': Portrait of a pivotal period in Japan

Based on the true story of a stock trader, the 1965 novel "The Informer" is remarkably prescient in describing the greed and venality that was, two decades later, to become a hallmark of the delirious days of Japan's bubble-era economy.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jun 22, 2017

Performances offer view into traditional culture

Summer in Tokyo: Excessive heat, relentless humidity and languid evenings spring to mind. Rather than fight the elements, visitors and Tokyoites alike are recommended to go with the flow and embrace sweltering temperatures. With the rainy season upon us and sizzling summer days just moments away, "Natsuno...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jun 22, 2017

One year after changes to the 'anti-dancing' law, clubbers are hopeful

Around two dozen people shuffle about the dark interior of Alzar, a recently opened nightclub on the eighth floor of a building in Osaka's Chuo Ward that also features a capsule hotel and sauna. Most hover near the concrete wall, watching a European DJ play house music. A group orders Champagne, taking...
EDITORIALS
Jun 20, 2017

Fiery indictment of U.K. inequality

The tragedy at Grenfell Tower, the worst such disaster in British history, demands a reassessment of the attention given to the poorest and most vulnerable in British society — and a similar reckoning by other governments.
Japan Times
JAPAN / CHUBU CONNECTION
Jun 19, 2017

At Aichi pharmacy chain, seniors get to work at their own pace

Starting this fall, Sugi Pharmacy Co., headquartered in Obu, Aichi Prefecture, will offer seniors a new type of job contract in order to help its older employees keep fitter for longer as well as address the company's manpower shortage.

Longform

Visitors walk past Sou Fujimoto's Grand Ring, which has been recognized as the largest wooden structure in the world.
Can a World Expo still matter? Japan is about to find out.